Sacrifice
by chinagirl223
Summary: In this world, children are sacrificed- given up to the terrible witch of the spirit world when they are very young. But only once every 100 years, when the last child is reincarnated. But what happens when, for the first time, a child is brought back to
1. scroll one

Sacrifice  
  
by Chinagirl223  
  
Chapter one *~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The bathhouse was steaming that day. It was the hottest it had ever gotten in the spirit world. Even the train had stopped working. Kamajii sat uselessly in the boiler room, the Susuwatari already turning to soot. Nobody could sleep peacefully- even though it was in the middle of the day- it was just too hot.  
  
A humid breeze blew in from the open window. The boiler room was silent; the boiler turned off- the coals gone cold. Yu-baaba was not happy with it, but it helped keep the heat down tremendously- at least until noon. Then, the sun hit full force; its rays radiating in through the light, pale shoji walls.  
  
The wind felt good despite how hot it was and Sen was grateful for it. It would be a long day- and an even longer night. The nights had bee hot and tiresome for the past few days, and none of the guests wanted hot baths. So the boiler room was shut. But the days were worse. The spirits- unable to sleep- wanted cold water to cool themselves with. Yu-baaba, of course, refused.  
  
So now the bathhouse was left with almost no guests and little water- the river had been running dry. That began to worry the witch of the bathhouse. The river was the threshold to the human world. If it was dwindling what did that mean? Would just ANY human be able to come to the spirit world? Surely Yubaba couldn't turn them all to pigs!  
  
The wrinkled woman knew how destructive those humans could be. It would not be safe for too many to come over. They would turn this world into their own- as they had done thousands of years before to their own world.  
  
But Sen knew nothing of this. The girl lay lazily on her pallet, which was left unpacked away. She'd been pretending to be asleep- waiting for her roommates to leave. It was hard work in the melting heat. If she tossed too much, she'd be noticed and if she didn't move at all it'd be unnatural. The sticky blankets began to get on her nerves as she shifted again so as not to burn in one spot.  
  
The room was now empty save Sen and a few yunas resting uneasily by the door. It was time for her to go out, but she'd have to be sneaky- Yu-baaba had ordered that no one was to go outside of the bath house. It was too much of a risk to go out while everybody was there. Sen slipped quietly by the dozing girls who unknowingly guarded the door- tossing in the heat.  
  
Slowly, she made her way to Kamajii's boiler room and crept by her restless friend.  
  
"Sen, where are you going? You know Yu-baaba's orders." The girl went to hug the spider-man and whispered softly, "Just for a little while Komage, please don't tell." Komage shrugged uneasily.  
  
"Just don't get caught."  
  
Sen nodded.  
  
The wind blew softly outside- it was much cooler. Sen wondered why Yubaba would forbid them to go out, as she began to climb the mountain of steps. It took a while to reach the front courtyard, but the journey wasn't too harsh. Even the sun seemed to shine a little less intensively. Sen smiled to herself as she felt a rush of freedom wash over her. It felt almost as refreshing as a cold bath.  
  
Lush gardens to her left beckoned with their (almost) untainted beauty. Flowers lined the sides of the green walls- well lined and tastefully arranged, if not slightly wilted. But something else called more strongly to her- the nearly dried up river. Sen made her way slowly over the bridge; uneasiness grew in her heart. She felt that it was pulling her in- the need to go to the river.  
  
A thin stream of water trickled gently over the dry stones. Sen couldn't remember another time when the water was this shallow. But the river suddenly seemed irrelevant as she gazed out on the land beyond. The gate that led to the human world had been made of stones that were the most silvery shade of grey. Towering many meters above the hills, it was always where the new spirits entered. It had been there forever.  
  
But the beautiful stones where a rustic shade of red, today. Had somebody painted it? Surely not the spirits, though they were the only ones allowed over the river.........The River! Sen suddenly could not see the river in front of her- had she crossed over? But that was impossible. Nobody could cross over. Sen was beginning to panic- she HAD to turn back. But something would not let her. Something was taking her to the human world.  
  
Come Chihiro, come home to us.........we miss you here, Chihiro, on the other side........  
  
The creeping voices faded as quickly as they had come, but they didn't matter- nothing could stop Sen from being pulled forward. It felt as if the wind was carrying her, like in her dreams when she rode on the river dragon. But now, Sen was scared- what was going to happen to her? Why was she being pulled toward the human world- who was Chihiro?  
  
The name Chihiro suddenly burst in her head. It was as if a memory was unburying itself from the depths of her mind............Chihiro.  
  
*Flash Back*  
  
The sun faded heavily in to the west. It was time to say goodbye, though the woman said nothing. Three figures stood outside the huge stonewall. The young girl- only 4- looked up at her mother, who was leaking tears at the corners of her eyes. Soon, the small drops began to pound heavily upon the ground as the woman knelt down to hug her child.  
  
The man frowned, his wife did not cry much- she was a strong woman. But he'd only seen her cry one other time, like this. His eyes began to wonder sorrowfully to his confused daughter, who stood comforting her mother unsuspectingly.  
  
The woman looked up from her daughter's shoulder, "Oh my daughter! How could this have happened? I shall miss you so much, my love. But you will not remember me for too long. Just try not to forget your name. Never forget your name!" The man touched his wife's shoulder gingerly and helped her up, holding her for the longest time. Finally, he let go and picked up the little girl in his arms, hugging her tightly. "Chihiro," the grey-eyed man whispered solemnly, "you must never forget who you are. No matter what Yubaba says, keep your own name- it is the only way to get out. Remember your home. Goodbye my daughter." The man lowered his head slowly and let his lips brush the top of his daughter's head.  
  
It was time to say goodbye.  
  
Suddenly, a heavy mist fell upon the grounds as the man hurriedly set his girl down. The child was frightened, and she clung to the small statue at the front of the train station temple. Something terrible was happening. Unexpectedly, two gnarled, but strong, hand grabbed the girl's waist and pulled her into the dark tunnel.  
  
"Daddy!! MOMMY!!" The child kicked frantically as she was pulled further into the tunnel. But soon, it was obvious that nothing could be done. She cried anyway. The vision of her faceless mother and father waving sadly to her as she was pulled from their grasps stung fresh in her mind. Even her childish brain could comprehend one thing- they'd given her away.  
  
*End of Flashback*  
  
Sen rubbed her eyes of the tears that fell freely. Crying was not helping. What was happening to that child? It seemed all so familiar- as if in a bad dream she'd had once. But it felt so real. Could that trembling little girl had been her?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Oh right!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Spirited Away OR Chihiro/Sen!!!  
  
BTW, I got all the name spellings from the ghibli website! And in case you don't know, yunas are those girls who wear the loose kimonos and have funny eyebrows (a.k.a. those girls who greet the guests- an example of them would be the girls who's skirts flew up when Haku and Chihiro ran by really quickly after the frog saw them!). Anyway, all the spelling should be correct! Please Review!  
  
-Chinagirl223 ^-^ 


	2. scroll two

Sacrifice  
  
By Chinagirl223  
  
()=author's notes  
  
Chapter Two *~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Yu-Baaba paced angrily over the mock Persian rug. It had been two days since Sen's disappearance- and the heat had gotten noticeably worse. The old wrinkled lady had been in a fowl mood all morning. Her flowers were wilting, the customers were leaving, and Bou had been a terrible nuisance since breakfast- it was time to take action.  
  
It was all because of the blasted heat. And this time she couldn't even blame Zeniiba! Haku had reported back with famine all over the spirit world. It was pure devastation. And now the spirits were blaming her. She, Yu-Baaba had just found out that there was to be a boycott of the bathhouse. It had somehow gotten out that the sacrifice had gotten away and that was causing the famine. She knew she should never had taken her in- should've just let Zeniiba have her like they'd agreed.  
  
But now her actions had ricocheted. She was taking the fall. And now, she had to think of a way to get Sen back- if not to stop the heat, then to prove herself innocent. But where to look? Suddenly, an idea struck her. Who was that girl that Sen roomed with......Lin? Min? (it's Rin) Yu-Baaba reached for her telephone. Dialing the number furiously.  
  
"Aniyaku!" the old woman screeched into the speaker, "Get me that......Rin! And better make it Kamajii, too- he's always been friendly to Sen hasn't he? Yes, send them up immediately. They're going to help me find Sen."  
  
"Yes, madam." A shaky voice said from the other end.  
  
Yu-Baaba hung up ubruptly. This would work. They would know where Sen went, and soon, Senn would be back and the famine would be over.  
  
~*~  
  
The tunnel wasn't as damp as Sen had thought it would be. It was actually kind of warm (not the uncomfortable kind like at the bathhouse, but a nice clean warmth like coming into a glowing fire on a chilly winter day) with a soft breeze blowing the stale air out. But Sen was still unsure. It had been at least a day- maybe a few hours more- since she'd woken up to find herself in a crumbling train station- the waiting are.  
  
The orange sunlight that filtered through the stained windows gave a soft glow to her skin and felt good on her face. She thought she might have even heard some people passing by. She'd thought it was spirits and rushed rather desperately to the front of the tunnel to see if they were passing. It was the radish spirit! It's belly heaving, and its pale skin a bit withered from the sun it was most deffinitly a resident of the bathhouse. Why was it leaving?  
  
But that thought was soon blown away as the dream of getting to something familiar filled her mind. Anything. She ran right in front of him. Standing with her hands outstretched- but he passed right through her! This had happened once when she had first come, but then, she'd become transluscent. She looked normal now. Was her mind fading instead?  
  
She hadn't even thought about food- she just didn't feel hungry. Many more spirits passed through, going back to the human world no doubt. But none saw her- even when she was blocking the tunnel entrance. Sen soon gave up. She'd have to find another way to get back to the bathhouse.  
  
It was a few hours into the second day that Sen decided to go into the tunnel. What else could she do? When she avoided the dark hole, she only wound up back to the waiting station. She'd never get back the way she came- and she knew it. So now, the only thing to do was go through the tunnel. It wasn't really that dark, or that scary. But she feared it anyway. Dark memories seemed to lie there.  
  
~*~  
  
"All she said was that it was boring and too hot in the bathhouse." Rin said, in what seemed to Yu-Baaba, a disrespectful tone, "She said she wanted to go outside to watch over the bridge- that's all." The witch nodded grudgingly. It had been an hour of questioning- and nothing. It was obvious this girl knew nothing, and if she did, she didn't even know she knew it! It was useless. Kamajii had simply refused to go up the Yu-Baaba's quarters. Even with the threat of being turned into a real spider, the boiler man simply shook his head, "I have nothing to say, except that I don't think the girl's absence is causing the heat."  
  
Yu-Baaba had fumed, "Then WHAT?!" Leave it to the only eligible boiler man in the spirit world to befriend a sacrifice. By the end of the day, Yu- Baaba was cursing the wits out of Aniyaku. But deep inside, she knew where the girl was. Storm clouds were gathering- summoning together for the big shower. How long would they tease this rotting land before the waters fell? Until Sen got back- thought Yu-Baaba; back from the human world.  
  
~*~  
  
Authoress: Wow! I really like this fic a lot, and I hope you do too! As before, I got all my name spellings This is just for reference.  
  
And of course, I don't own Spirited Away!!! *small sob*  
  
So PLEASE review!!! And thanx to all my reviewers so far! 


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